Spy Wars: I have space, but I choose to work alone

The first night was spent in the sound of fierce gunfire between scouts from both sides.

After daybreak, the commander of the search regiment of the 56th Division of the Japanese Army and the commander of the 146th Infantry Regiment held binoculars and looked at the main position of the Lawu defense in front of them.

Looking at the densely packed reinforced concrete bunkers on the main position, as well as the dense anti-tank triangles and anti-infantry barbed wire in front of the position, Colonel Hirai of the search regiment said cautiously to Colonel Imaoka, the commander of the 146th Infantry Regiment:

"Kimaoka-kun, it looks like the defenses at Lawu are far more complete than the photos in the foreign newspapers flown in by the intelligence department. It looks like they are a bit vulnerable!"

"I think we should first do a good job on the perimeter and eliminate the Shancheng Army's scouts. According to the report from the special forces squadron assigned to us, they were unable to reach the perimeter of the Shancheng Army's position last night. The enemy's scouts are very cunning and seem to have received comprehensive jungle combat training like us. The special forces, led by the local natives, were unable to gain any advantage and were ambushed by the enemy several times."

"This has never happened before in previous battles. I think we should wait for the main force of the division to bring in large-caliber heavy artillery. Otherwise, the small-caliber artillery we carry will have no effect on these reinforced concrete!"

Colonel Imai, commander of the 56th Infantry Regiment of the 146th Division of the Japanese Army, who rose through the ranks as a low-level officer, glanced at Lawu's defensive fortifications with disdain.

"Hirai-kun, you are worrying too much. You are a cavalryman and have never fought a battle with the Yamashiro Army. It's no wonder that you don't know their level. They are just a group of third-rate national army troops who have never fought a war. I can guarantee that as soon as our artillery shells fall and the infantry rushes forward, they will drop their weapons and run away like frightened sheep."

"Oh! I forgot, Hirai-kun is from a wealthy family, he should have never seen a flock of frightened sheep! No wonder!"

"I would even bet that they built these seemingly solid reinforced concrete fortifications, which are made of mud inside and cement outside, and use bamboo as reinforcement, just to deal with the superficial tricks done by foreign journalists. They don't even use heavy artillery, just Type 92 infantry guns, which will collapse with one shot."

"And even if it's true, so what? Aren't the white fortifications we encountered on the Malay Peninsula stronger than this? But wouldn't they be let loose after a barrage of artillery fire? In the end, war depends on people. A group of KMT spies and new recruits are nothing to worry about!"

"I suggest that we act without further delay. Aerial reconnaissance shows that the expeditionary forces are pulling back their front lines and showing signs of a full retreat. The sooner we occupy Lawu, the more likely we are to annihilate the 100,000-strong expeditionary force."

"First, the infantry of the 146th Regiment will blast the anti-tank cones, barbed wire, and the armor of Hirai-kun's search regiment on the front line. The tanks will then be concentrated, and with the coordination of the fighter planes, we will launch a full-scale attack and strive to achieve a one-time victory."

Colonel Imaoka said this to Colonel Hirai, an officer of noble birth, when he was about to say something.

"I have already reported the battle plan to the division commander!"

At this time, the signalman ran over with a telegram and shouted:

"Report to His Excellency the Commander, the division has called back!"

Colonel Imaoka took the report and said to Colonel Hirai proudly:

"The division commander has agreed to my plan and appointed me as the supreme commander of the front line! He has also coordinated the Army Aviation fighter planes to cooperate with our operations."

"Since the division commander has agreed, I will obey his decision!"

Colonel Hirai, commander of the search corps of the 56th Division of the Japanese Army, answered with gritted teeth, but he still felt a little uneasy in his heart.

"The devils are coming! The devils are coming!"

At the main position of Lawu, Japanese scouts were seen observing through binoculars in the distance. The defenders who were originally resting in the trenches immediately pointed their weapons at the Japanese in the distance.

"Don't fire without orders. We are still far away and can't reach them! Don't expose your firepower in advance! Everyone, fire as ordered!"

The few officers who had actual combat experience immediately stopped the recruits from overreacting and cheered the soldiers loudly.

"Brothers, the elders and fellow villagers are all watching us. Don't be afraid. We have the great treasure house of Lawu behind us. We have enough bullets, rice and canned meat. We are waiting for the Japanese to come and die in the solid fortifications. I have never fought such a rich battle in my eight lifetimes!"

"Look at the weapons in your hands, they can fire in bursts! The Fifth Army doesn't even have this kind of treatment!"

"This time I killed the enemy and made merit. Here's my chance to bring honor to my family!"

But no matter how the officers encouraged each other, the soldiers all looked unhappy as they held the American-made submachine guns and light and heavy machine guns in their hands, and many of them had trembling calves.

After all, they were able-bodied men who had just completed recruit training, and most of them were captured.

It has been less than two months since they got the guns, and many of them actually fired their guns for the first time. It was only yesterday when Ma Liang organized the new recruits to familiarize themselves with the new weapons and they fired dozens of bullets.

"Open fire!" Colonel Kanaoka ordered into the field telephone.

Afterwards, all the guns of the 146th Regiment, together with the tank guns of the 56th Division's search regiment, concentrated their firepower on the main position of the Lawu defenders.

More than sixty artillery pieces of various types fired at the same time, creating a huge momentum.

"Oh my god! I quit!"

After only 15 minutes of bombardment, in the dark and depressing anti-artillery cave that felt like it would collapse at any time, a new recruit with poor psychological endurance could not bear it anymore. He threw his gun to the ground and ran towards the only entrance of the anti-artillery cave where there was light.

"Stop him!"

As soon as the officer gave the order, there was a loud bang and a shell exploded at the entrance of the cave. The new recruit who had just rushed out flew back into the anti-artillery cave like a rag doll.

“Ding ding ding…”

The field telephone in the anti-gun cave rang.

"Enter the trenches! The Japanese engineers are blasting barbed wire and anti-tank cones. We must stop them!"

The officer was stunned at first. He was a special agent of the Military Control Commission and had never been on the battlefield. He had only received "performance" training from Ma Liang a few days ago and knew roughly what to do. After thinking for a while, he gritted his teeth and ordered:

"Hurry, get into the trenches, get into the trenches!"

But with the example of the new recruit just now, the other new recruits were unwilling to leave the anti-artillery cave.

"This is an order, get into the trenches! Anyone who disobeys will be subject to military law!"

After saying this, the officer kicked and pulled with the butt of his rifle, forcing all the new recruits in the anti-gun cave who were still running away outside into the trenches.

When he led the team out, he discovered that their anti-artillery hole was the only one on the entire position that came out the fastest, while the others had not yet fully deployed.

"Fire!"

Seeing that the Japanese soldiers had begun to approach the barbed wire and anti-tank cones with explosives, he immediately gave the order to open fire.